A SERMON Preached in New Brentford Church IN MIDDLESEX, December the 2d. 1697.  
BEING The THANKSGIVING-DAY to Almighty GOD for His Majesty's Safe Return, and for the Happy and Honourable PEACE, of which God hath made HIM the Glorious Instrument.  
By CHRISTOPHER JOHNSON, M. A.  
School-Master of Richmond in Surrey.  
LONDON.  
Printed by F. Collins, for Samuel Buckley at the Dolphin over against St. Dunstan's Church in Fleetstreet. 1698.   
NUMB. XXIII. 23. — According to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, what hath God wrought? 
THE Blessing of GOD descending upon the Undertakings of Men, is not only the Glory and Crown, but also the very Soul of their Labours; it being the Work of a Divine Hand, which finishing the many Draughts and Lineaments of their greatest Essays and Designs, makes them prosperous and beautiful in their Season: For all the Excellency of human Wisdom and Art, though united to the greatest worldly Strength, vanisheth into the soft Air, if the Almighty doth not animate and cherish it, so as it shall be said, to the Praise of the Eternal KING, not, what hath Man? but, what hath God wrought? Both WAR and PEACE attest the Truth of this; for whether the battle be to the strong, or weak side, 'tis the Finger of GOD gives the Day. If PEACE presents itself to us like Noah's Dove, with an Olive-Leaf in her Mouth, betokening 
Gen. 8. 11.  the Waters of Destruction to cease, or with Wings covered with Silver, and her Feathers with yellow 
Psal. 68. 13.  Gold, as an Emblem of future Plenty, Wealth, and Honour, it comes by the Grace and Supreme Authority of Him, who is both the Lord of Hosts, and GOD OF PEACE; and who having his Throne amid transcendent Glories in the highest Heaven, sits nevertheless on the circled of the Earth, beholding and governing the Inhabitants thereof; and his Power, Justice, and Mercy are alike omnipresent, as is his Existence: By the two former of which His Divine Attributes exerted into Act, He often issues forth a Commission to the avenging Sword, to visit such Nations or People, as his infinite Wisdom pronounces meet to be exercised therewith. But when after some determined Period of time His Mercy sweetly interposes, and mediates between Him and sinful Man, then the Sword is recalled into its sheathe, and the sceptre of His Grace is held out unto them, and the Glad tidings of PEACE proclaimed, to the abundant Joy of all those, who wish well unto themselves, and to Zion; and of whom it may be then properly declared, as it was in ancient time concerning the Jews, when God had done wondrous things for them; According to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, what hath God wrought?  
Which Prophetical Phrase, originally relating to the Jews, may challenge to itself Accomplishments vastly numerous in regard to other Nations also, and with Circumstances as various perhaps, as the Occasions thereof have been manifold, throughout the grand Multiplication of time, in its Fleeting and uncertain Stages, redounding always by some Method or other to the Glory of God's Justice, or of his Mercy; and that frequently with the Impressions of stupendious Remakrs from his many signal Providences; which, when they are Miracles of Mercy to one Prince, Nation, or People, may be Judgments, and severe Reprimands for the Loftiness and Oppression of another:  
For how greatly is this Assertion verified by the ancient Dispensations of God's Loving Kindness to the Children of Israel, in their many Deliverances, and the Destruction, or at least Humiliation of their Enemies complying with, and suing to them for PEACE, not without Overtures of very honourable and advantageous Articles of Agreement, if they would please to accept them? So that, Happy are the People that are in such a case; yea, blessed are the People who have the Lord for their God: Within the circled of which Felicity and Beatitude, we are( all Honour and Adoration be unto God for it) now circumscribed, or rather, I may say, placed in the center thereof, because the Lord hath done great things for us, whereof we rejoice; for he hath broken the Bow of Steel, and knapped the Spear asunder; and even rendered all the Artillery and Weapons of War useless, by making the Voice of PEACE to sound every where among us, with Melody of Joy to our Hearts, balancing at last the Sorrows and Miseries, which were predominant under the dull and melancholy Aspect of WAR; and that not for any Righteousness of ours, for we are a sinful and stiff-necked People, but that He manifests his Divine Love to us, as in former days he did to the Jews, we being( as they were under the Law) his CHURCH under the Gospel; a part at least of that holy Universal Church, whose lively Branches spread any where over the face of the Terrestrial Globe: Our FAITH is Orthodox, and our Form of Worship pure; which, if not sullied and blemished with the filthy Spots of Immoralities and Ingratitude, will be a sufficient Antidote against the most venomous Evil of the old Serpent, and a mighty Preservative of God's Favour to us; an impregnable  
Fortress against the most furious Batteries and Attacks of Crafty, and formidable Enemies: For where holy Religion is well attended with practise, God will be a Wall of Fire in defence of it, and all its hearty Professors; so that when his Beloved sleeps, it shall be in Peace, and the greatest Safety: For he will stand always on the watch, that neither the subtlety of Man, nor the Machinations of the black Regions of Darkness, shall prevail against those who firmly adhere to him: Their Bow shall, like Joseph's, abide in Strength, 
Gen. 49. ●4.  and the Arms of their Hands shall be made strong by the Hands of the mighty God of Jacob: And in them shall that glorious Prediction be fulfilled; Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any Divination against Israel: According to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, what hath God wrought?  
Which is part of Balaam's famous prophesy concerning the high Advancement, and perpetually ascending Prosperity of God's then peculiar People, through the magnifying Favour of Divine Protection: That the self-same Sorcerer, who came from ●ar, for Lucre's sake, with full intent to curse Jacob and defy Israel, and let no pious Fraud be wanting to withdraw Heaven's Kindness( if possible) from them, should not be able to utter one Syllable, but what was an Harangue of their Felicity and Exaltation, or a lofty panegyric upon their noble Exploits, seems stranger than that after Wonder, even to a Proverb in Israel; Is Saul also among the Prophets? But God 
1 Sam. 10. 12.  Almighty to serve the glorious ends of his Providence, could change the Heart of one, as well as of the other, or cause his Spirit of Illumination to descend for a time upon an unsanctified Person, crossing his hellish and carnal Sentiments, by powerful Operations from above, strong and irresistible Raptures, converting his Thoughts of horrid enchantments into exalted Meditations, and excellent Speeches of Divine Providence, with a forcible Constraint upon his Heart and Tongue to deliver, instead of his lying Divinations, nothing but Sacred Oracles of Truth, comprehending most sublime Speculations concerning the Victories, Peace, and Glory of that People, whose Cause and Interest God had espoused.  
A Compendium, or short Summary of all which the Text exhibits to us; for by it we understand mighty and marvelous things done for the Children of Israel; and who was the prime Cause thereof, the Great GOD: The Person he was pleased to substitute, and make instrumental under Him for the effecting of that gracious Work, we may easily understand to be him, of whom there is elsewhere frequent mention made, Moses the Servant of the Lord. And we may observe the Circumstance of time, when this was brought to pass; in those days wherein Balak hired Balaam to curse the People and Congregation of the Lord, and he was forced to bless them; According to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, what hath God wrought?  
Such a Burden of the Word of the Lord we may conceive was upon this famous Magician, with a heavy Vengeance pursuing him, if he did not proclaim it to a title, according to the full Contents of the Charge given him, which contained that word only, which the Lord put into his Mouth; that beyond those sacred Limits he could not pass, to do less or more. In testimony to which stands, as a firm and lasting Monument, our noble Argument in hand, divinely spoken by a wicked Man; which is full Demonstration of much Force and Compulsion: For otherwise, from an evil Heart and Tongue, could not proceed such good words, as are the Extract of the most resined and sublimest Thoughts concerning the Dignity and Felicity of God's People. As if he had enlarged upon our comprehensive Subject, as we may do by a very natural and agreeable paraphrase, and expressed himself in the ensuing Form: Hear me all ye Enemies of Israel, and those who seek their Hurt: The peculiar Love and Favour the Almighty consigns to his People, and his memorable Acts effected for them, at this time, and some years past, by that mighty Deliverance with an High hand from their Servitude and Bondage in Egypt, with his glorious Conduct and Protection, and triumphant Conquests vouchsafed them, to this place of their present Encampment in the Plains of Moab, and his Abhorrence and Refusal of Balak's many Altars and Sacrifices, and my enchantments and Divinations, by which I go in eager quest of some means how to alienate him from them, or to contract and lessen the very great Kindness he bears to them; that thereby I may have power to lay a Curse on those Hebrews, or if not on all, on a part at least of them; that instead of the Peace and Power of God remaining with them, the King of Moab may, by virtue of my Malediction, victoriously wage War with them. All this, and what else remains, that might be more particularly remembered, will afford excellent Matter to compile a most glorious History of this ever blessed and happy People; whereby the future Ages of the World shall, as well as this present Generation, be astonished, and marvel at God's wondrous Operations; which, as they shall be a most celebrious Object of universal Admiration, so also a very ample Subject of innumerable Discourses and Orations, be they of Praise and Benediction, or of familiar and grave Conversation, even to that very day the last Trumpet of time shall sound, and the pleasant Echo of all Worldly famed and Grandeur shall be shut up in the Abyss of Primitive Silence: Which mighty things, we speak of, shall take their Rise, and solemn Epocha, or Date, from these remarkable days, we now live in; for, according to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, what hath God wrought?  
And now the providential and happy Circumstances, we are this most joyous Day blessed with, by an auspicious and endearing PEACE, and the happy Consequences, we trust, are annexed to it, make me enter upon these words,( answering, as it were in a full Chorus, to our present Thanksgiving) as very proper to be paralleled with our present State, and from my Meditations on them, to deduce these subsequent General Heads.  
First, That GOD hath done a very Great, and a 
I.  Gracious, a Wonderful, and a Glorious Work for these Realms of GREAT BRITAIN and IRELAND, for their Friends and Allies.  
Secondly, That, like a Moses to us, God's Anointed 
II.  Servant, and our Dread sovereign Lord KING WILLIAM the Third, hath been the happy Instrument of effecting this great and mighty Work, in the Deliverance of EUROPE. And,  
Thirdly, That all this shall be a large Theme of 
III.  Discourse, of Praise and Thanksgiving, not only in these days we live in, but to our Posterity also; and in the Generations to come, according to this time, it shall be said o● us,( as it hath been, and yet shall be said of Jacob and of Israel) what hath GOD wrought?  
First, GOD hath done a Great, and a Gracious, a 
I.  Wonderful, and a Glorious Work for these Realms of GREAT BRITAIN and IRELAND, for their Friends and Allies.  
For such a marvelous Scene of high achievements may entertain our Contemplations, if we let loose the Springs of our Minds to ponder aright upon those noble Passages of GOD's Providence, the Palladium of our Safety, which will give Wings to our Fancies, that they may mount from our gross Tabernacles into the delectable Regions of more clear, and distinct Ideas and Apprehensions of GOD's Grace and Glory shining upon us, and 'allure our Souls to take frequent Flights, not into some sorrowful Deserts of Lamentation, but into the solacing Mountain of the Lord's House, where we shall find that a joyful and pleasant thing it is to be thankful for His blessed Visitation of us in our distress, dispelling the thick Mists of our anxious Fears by the Light of his Countenance darting radiant and gladsome Beams into our Hearts, as he raised up an Horn of Salvation for us, our MIGHTY DELIVERER and GRACIOUS sovereign; when our Enemies thought they had totally gained the Ascendant over us, and the Day was their own; but found themselves deceived, as it were in the Morning-watch thereof, when GOD looked upon them, and sorely troubled their whole Host, for their Destruction was the more visible and approaching by the Sea of their own Wickedness returning strongly upon them, as the Day dawned, or the time drew near, which they hoped would be triumphant to them, and of a fatal Climacter unto us; Yet soon experienced they were, miserable deluded by their Calculation of our Ruin; and that in prognosticating it, their Astrology was no infallible thing; when the evil-destiny fell upon themselves with a sudden and unexpected Surprisal, and happy was he who could fly fastest, though with ill Wills and heavy Hearts they driven on, but with almost as quick dispatch as Asahel himself could make, who was as light of foot as a wild row; compassing 
2 Sam. 2. 18.  Sea and Land, not to make Proselytes, those days were elapsed, but to seek a Refuge to escape the Vengeance due unto their Demerits, the Sentence whereof their guilty Consciences pronounced loudly unto them, and the Terror of it, which God struck into them, made the Wicked flee, but not without hopes of returning with Fury to play a bloody and fiery after-Game with us; and to work their Ends by Craft, and Artifice, and many Stratagems projected in their deepest Counsels, whose Arcana's were often, perhaps, sealed up by the greatest Art of their wisest Heads, with purpose not to be disclosed, till like the opening of Pandora's Box, they might produce the most Epidemical Mischiefs.  
And yet that the Vanity of our Adversaries, after all its Efforts, hand in hand with Folly, should meet with Confusion, and their Errors with a Hiss instead of a Plaudite: This was GOD's Work, a great Act of his Grace and Favour to us, that no Ahithophel's Counsel could give us the mortal Blow. And then, when WAR was necessary to produce PEACE and Safety to us and Europe, it was a wonderful and glorious thing, that a CONFEDERACY of many PRINCES and POTENTATES of different Nations and People should be so closely cemented in the firmest Union, that no Policy or enchantment could dissolve it, or cause any to violate the League of mutual Amity, and Defence for public Preservation; unless from the ALPS we may behold One who courted imaginary Interest before real Honour.  
Again, it has been the good Effect of God's mighty and powerful Operations, that our KING should be preserved safe in various Perils by Land and Sea, in his generous and heroic Enterprizes, through the many Fatigues and uncertain Chances of WAR. As also that, when for our Ingratitude and Wickedness our late sovereign Lady the QUEEN of ever Glorious and Blessed Memory, received a sudden Call to depart from us, her unworthy Subjects, into the Society of blessed Spirits, as more fit to enjoy so pious a SOUL; by whose decease our Enemies hoped to reap advantage against us; yet our deplorable LOSS did not answer their Expectations, when they triumphed in the midst of our Mourning and Lamentation.  
And with what a deep sense must we confess it to be a most gracious Act of GOD's special and glorious Providence in saving his Anointed by his Right hand, and preserving his LIFE from fear of the Enemy, hiding him from the secret Counsel of the Wicked, from the Insurrection of the Workers of Iniquity? when a profoundly impious, and( O I am almost at a loss for apt words to decipher the Horror and Malignity of the Crime!) a malicious and diabolical PLOT was conceived and forster'd, with all the Hellish Art against the SACRED LIFE of our most GRACIOUS sovereign; which proved abortive, even then, when its cursed Birth was by some cruel and ungodly Men impatiently expected, and by others forwarded with Venom, Spite, and the full power of that pernicious Race of Men, who were united into such a Body as formed a monstrous Hydra, with the most direful Intentions of Regicide and Assassination, and many dismal Consequences to us all; yet their many fiery Heads, being providentially discovered, were struck off with such fatal Blows, as turned the total Destruction upon the horrid and cruel Vermin. And may no more ever rise in their room, or if they do, may a timely Prevention effectually disappoint their wicked Imaginations and Designs.  
And now we will always aclowledge it to be the great Work of the LORD, that hath frustrated the utmost Attempts of our Antagonists; who, rather than not ruin us, were resolved to encounter the severest Hardships, and be reduced to the bitterest Extremities: For having carved out our Destruction in Essigie, they were so full of it in their Ambition and Fancies, that rather than fail of real Success, they seemed willing( being instigated thereto by their implacable Wrath) to venture two Deaths, might we but fall a Victim to their Rage by one: Yet the happy Scale turned so to our Side, that they were oppressed and weighed down by the Justice of our Cause, and  
GOD's Blessing thereon, which was infinitely more than a bare Counterpoise against those Children of Men that were but Vanity, those Children of Men that were deceitful upon the Weights, and altogether lighter than Vanity itself.  
Finally, Behold we GOD's Work displayed with all the eminent Symbols and Characters of Greatness and Favour, of Admiration and Glory in the Eyes of all considering Men, when he hath been mighty to save EUROPE out of all those Perils and Miseries, which like a terrible Hurricane threatened her: He hath fought for us, and we do now( blessed be his holy Name) see the Salvation of the LORD, which he hath shewed to us, by making the Ensigns and Trophies of WAR fall down at the appearance of PEACE arising by his Gracious Providence like the SUN in his Brightness, pleasant and comfortable both in the Prospect and happy Enjoyment of all those Bene●its its Influences produce to the Sons of Men. And an honourable PEACE it is that God hath wrought for our Liege Lord KING WILLIAM, and the Princes and States, his ALLIES, with no small▪ Advantage to such a most High and Potent Confederacy; for which prosperous Issue of Affairs, a Blessing of Blessings, a Celestial Happiness on Earth, we are here assembled this Day to celebrate a devout and joyful Thanksgiving.  
And now put all we have said together, and think on much more, and we shall see, as the Finger of GOD hath ordered every particular Motion to have its effect, according to the good Purpose of his holy Will, in the weighty business we have hitherto discoursed of, the total Sum of all in general, made up by the Addition or Induction of every singular Blessing, must, of necessary consequence from the Maxims of Reason, infer that it is GOD's WORK, and a very Great and Gracious, a Wonderful and Glorious WORK, that He hath wrought for these Realms of GREAT BRITAIN and IRELAND, for their Friends and Allies. Wherefore this conducts us to our  
Second General Head; That like a Moses to us, 
II  GOD's Anointed Servant, Our Dread sovereign Lord KING WILLIAM the Third, hath been the Happy Instrument of effecting this Great and Mighty Work, in the Deliverance of EUROPE.  
The whole Series of Affairs ever since the first Appearances of the Happy REVOLUTION by our High and Mighty MONARCH's Arrival on our Coasts, evinces the positive Verity of so clear and demonstrative an Assertion; only this Difference will distinguish between the Case of the Children of Israel, and of Us: Moses was sent to deliver them from a long endured Thraldom, and our KING to save us, when we were on the brink of Ruin. This being admitted, the Parallel is true, and we will go on to aver that in our Preservation, and the whole Course of the WAR, the Illustrious NASSAW hath been the Man of God's Right Hand, whom he made strong for Himself and Us. He hath gone forth in his Might to fight our Battels, and been the Soul and Support of the Confederacy, uniting and corroborating the Princes in League with him; in whom under GOD, they fixed their full Hope and Confidence, and were not frustrated in most weighty and important Assurances: When in the worst Events, the seasonable and auspicious Turn, his Presence and Conduct gave to the Affairs of Christendom, created a new Life, with increase of Spirit and Vigour in them. One Instance for Illustration hereof, I shall produce: That Summer His MAJESTY made his Royal Expedition into IRELAND, the Campaign frowning upon the Confederates in some of their Countries, by no small Disappointments and Losses, with the unaccountable Misfortune the GRAND FLEET at Sea received about the same time, might have been fatal Miscarriages to the whole Body of the happy and well-form'd Alliance, had not the true marshal Genius of our KING made the River BOYNE for ever memorable and famous, when on its Banks he gathered the Laurels of an entire VICTORY over the Enemy, which crowned Him a second time KING of that Nation, and was an happy Omen and Prelude of its total Reduction in GOD's good time unto the Obedience of Him their Victorious, Lawful, and Rightful sovereign. This great Action buoyed up the Spirits of the whole Confederacy, baffled their Enemies, saved EUROPE from falling into a grand Convulsion, and received the Praise and Thanks of Multitudes of honest and good Men.  
So that the happy Consequences of that providential and mighty thing, at that nice Juncture of time, have been apparently many; and the KING well knowing how to make use of a VICTORY, pursued his Stroke with such unwearied Diligence and Application in all ●●●p●cts, as gave Magnanimity to his Allies, with Constancy and Resolution to give Life to heroic Actions; till having cut the way through many rough Difficulties, they have arrived in the end to their desired Haven of Rest and Tranquillity, a blessed and seasonable PEACE, adorned with Honour and Advantage: A PEACE, we hope may be as inviolable, as its Sanction and Ratifications are sacred by that great Tie of Princes mutual Oaths and Stipulations, which ought to be, like the Gordian Knot, indissoluble; and if any shall pretend to be the Alexander to cut it, he may acquire the infamous and degrading Title of the most unjust, but never rightly that of Ille Magnus: For nothing can be truly great, which is not so qualified, as to undergo the Test of GOD's Approbation, that it is good: And the ancient Heathens will assure the most ambitious Man on Earth, that he can no way obtain true Honour, but by passing first through the Temple of Virtue; and breach of Vows and Covenants hath in all Ages received the Brand of an innate Contradiction and Repugnancy to all that hath the Face or Name of Goodness, Virtue, or Honour.  
Wherefore we will discard all melancholy Diffidence; and hope in GOD that this Land, and all others concerned in the late WAR, shall have a long REST, a blessed and lasting REPOSE, by the Period PEACE hath put to War, and thereby caused the Gates of Janus's Temple to be with us no longer open: Instead of which undeserved Blessing, what Wo and Misery had triumphed over us? if God, of his In●inite Mercy to us, a wretched and ungrateful Race of Sinners, had not raised up our most Serene and VALIANT KING to be our Deliverer from that deluge of Evils then flowing upon us; to be the Restorer and Establisher of our RIGHTS and LIBERTIES, Sacred and Civil; the Great Patron and Defender of EUROPE, not only by his Counsels and Directions, but his Valour in the Field of battle, sparing neither His ROYAL PERSON, nor His incessant Pains, early and late, willingly enduring for us the like Toil, that Jacob did in Laban's Service; whom 
Gen. 31. 40.  in the Day the Drought consumed, and the Frost by Night, and the Sleep departed from his Eyes. Our Preservation then in Rest and Ease, hath cost our most GRACIOUS sovereign unknown Watchings and Labours, all which he hath undergone with great Courage and Conduct, Patience and Constancy, through a various Scene of Circumstances, full of incredible and almost inextricable Labyrinths; and all this not for some few Weeks or Months, but it hath been a Thread of those several Years spinning, which, if we subtract but one from the Siege and Wars of Troy, runs a Parallel of time with them, if we count from that twice renowned Year and Day of His MAJESTY's auspicious Landing on our Coasts; or from the Alarm and Consternation at Salisbury, to the time wherein many aching Hearts were this last Campaign replenished with a sudden and unexpected Joy by his vigilant Preservation of BRUSSELS.  
From what hath been delivered upon our two first General Heads, though but a small Epitome of all that might be spoken, it is manifest that without GOD's Aid it would have been utterly impossible, and without King WILLIAM's Endeavours under Him, as His blessed Instrument; it is most improbable that this great Work, which is wrought for us, had received this joyful Conclusion by a General and desirable PEACE, instead of all the Miseries and bitter Calamities, which might have long since invaded us, and all our Properties: And therefore we will close this part of our Discourse with the Israelites Watchword, or Signal to the battle against their Enemies the Midianites, judge. 7. 20. The Sword of the Lord, and of Gideon; only varying the Phrase, so as to accommodate it to our own Purpose, and affirm that not only ours, but Europe's Deliverance, hath been wrought by the Sword of the LORD, and of KING WILLIAM. And from hence I proceed to my  
Third General Head; That all this, which is done 
III.  for us, shall be a large▪ Theme of Discourse, of Praise and Thanksgiving, not only in these days, we live in, but to our Posterity also; and in the Generations to come, According to this time it shall be said of us,( as it hath been, and yet shall be said of Jacob and of Israel) what hath GOD wrought?  
Signal and Gracious Providences not only require, but sometimes enforce acknowledgements bearing some Analogy or Proportion to the Good they do; especially, when they are free and general, and not contracted within the narrow limits, which concern but few Objects, and moreover give a Product that becomes a Blessing of the first Rate or Magnitude; such as is after a long WAR, and all its concomitant Miseries, a sweet and flourishing PEACE, which immediately affects the present time, and is not lost in future Ages: For unless Reason and Sense abandon Men, their Spirits will upon such Occasions be so excited, that their Lips will be presently open, and their Mouths filled with such grateful Speeches, as shall show forth God's Praise: when the Subject is so copious, it calls for a suitable Return, and shall not die for want of Commemoration, so long as it is exhilarating and pleasant; for then with a lively air it stirs them up to rejoice in the Lord, and joy in the God of their Salvation: And that the Remembrance of so great a Blessing may not be lost from Posterity, the Alacrity of the Times will summon all Men to declare God's Mercies, as the Prophet Joel did call upon them to rehearse his Judgments, chap. I. v. 2, 3. Hear this ye old Men, and give ear all ye Inhabitants of the Land: Tell ye your Children of it, and let your Children tell their Children, and their Children another Generation. Or for the better memorial of it, a Book shall be written, wherein shall be declared the righteous Acts of the Lord, and his loving Kindnesses to the Sons of Men; so that the Tongues of the now unborn Babes shall from their Cradles begin, and through the several Stages of their Lives, unto their Graves, continue to sing the Praises of GOD for his mighty Works in these days, together with the Renown of his VICEGERENT, our most Gracious sovereign, the Glory and famed of his Valour and mighty Acts, which may so amaze and astonish them, as the Greatness of Solomon did the Queen of Sheba, when a Transport of Admiration overpowered her Senses, so as almost to bereave her of Life, it being recorded that upon her own personal Experience of his Wisdom, and view of all his Glory and Majesty, which more than double exceeded the famed she had heard of him, there was no more Spirit in her, 1 King. 10.  
Wherefore the marvelous Acts of the LORD shall be had in everlasting remembrance, and His Anointed. Servant King WILLIAM shall not be forgotten; for it shall be said how GOD, in his tender Mercy to us, stirred up his heroic Spirit to across the Sea with Naval and Land Forces to deliver us from the many Evils that did encompass us; and protect our Religion, our Laws and Liberties. It shall be said how all Opposition fell before Him; how His MAJESTY, and His ROYAL CONSORT, of Glorious Memory, were installed in the Thrones of their ILLUSTRIOUS ANCESTORS, and with the Joys and Acclamations of the People solemnly crwoned our KING and QUEEN: And the famed of their Wisdom and Government shall carry such an Emphasis with it into the Ears of Men, as may cause them to envy us, and the days we live in. It shall be much spoken how familiar the Cardinal Virtue of Fortitude was with Him, and how readily He embraced every fit moment of exercising it to the Benefit of Mankind, with peril of His own Life. It shall be said how a Bullet at the BOYNE was let fly with hopes, no doubt, to put a fatal Period to His Life; and yet by a special Act of Providence, did as it were only salute Him, and was as a Token or Pledge of His next Day's Triumph by Victory in the battle, and of the after total Reduction of the whole Kingdom of IRELAND unto the Power of His sceptre. And moreover, a mighty Voice from our Times shall echo in the Ears of future Ages, resounding the farther Praises of GOD's Mercies, and the Labours and successses of His Anointed: The Victory at SEA shall 
The Right Honourable the Earl of Orford being then Admiral.  not be overwhelmed with Oblivion in that devouring Element, on whose Surface it was obtained; when by it a fair advance was, we may imagine, made towards the Happiness, we this Day enjoy. And HIS MAJESTY's Annual Voyages over the great Deep, with God's stoping the Water-flouds, and commanding the Winds and the Waves to serve Him, may make an Addition, not to Annals and Chronicles only, but also to the Book of Nature, in what concerns Spring and Autumn; the former being the usual Season of the Royal Expedition, and the later of a Joyful Return from those Campaigns, which can never be forgotten, so long as their Actions were animated with so much Life and Vigour, that they cannot easily languish; which, when hereafter past the Memory of Man, shall be preserved alive by their immortal famed in the Records of our Times; and there being so great a hand of GOD throughout the whole Affair, all may be accounted sacred, and kept as such in the Archives of all Ages, till the General Conslagration shall summon Time to conclude all in universal Silence, and to be no more: But till the last period of all things, it is very likely the late WAR, and the present happy PEACE shall be obvious to the view of all Men, in those Historical Volumes, which from such abundant Matter may be composed by expert and ingenious Pens, and which shall give a lively prospect of many heroic achievements, and shall present to the Eyes of the Reader the almost impregnable NAMUR beleaguered by our KING, and notwithstanding the powerful Opposition within it, in view of a very numerous Army sent to its Relief, by Him so vanquished, that it was con●●rained to a Surrender: This shall always carry on it Marks of Admiration, together with the many other Great and Noble Acts of His Valour, and Sage Conduct, to the finishing Stroke of that Prowess, and Wisdom which is better than Weapons of War, when He so timely saved BRUSSELS aforementioned, and stemmed thereby the Tide of many Evils, that might have succeeded thereon, instead of that Blessed PEACE which crwoned that Brave and Generous Action, and all the like Fore-runners of it: So that from henceforth, according to this time it shall be said of us,( as of Jacob and of Israel,) what hath God wrought?  
And now it remains that we make some Application of the premises; and therein give Glory unto the GOD of Israel for his unspeakable Mercies in that Great Work, which so nearly and highly concerns us and many Nations, which bears the Character and Face of an universal Good to a large part of Mankind, and not limited to a few. May then the Return of Gratitude and Praise to the LORD OF HEAVEN and Earth, be made by all far and near, who have tasted or heard of his Great Goodness unto the Children of this Generation, and which may be an unknown Blessing to many succeeding Ages; who may too be so sensible of it as to rise up in judgement, and condemn their Forefathers Ingratitude, if GOD's Goodness doth not now draw Men to Repentance, and influence their Hearts to love him, because He first loved them; and after all other Acts, hath so lately and signally poured his Benefits upon us, in delivering us from the hand of our Enemies by that PRINCE, for whom we, and many Kingdoms and People are bound to pray, and offer the Sacrifice of Praise; and likewise in knitting together many Potentates for the common Defence of EUROPE, and in so guiding and governing the Stream of the WAR, that according to what measure soever, more or less, the Race hath been to the Swift, or the Battle to the Strong; yet a beloved PEACE is now the hopeful Issue of many Years travail: This is the LORD's Doing, and it is marvelous in our Eyes.  
For truly the Work is exceeding great; it is stamped with no mean figure; it represents on one side Omnipotence, and bears on the Reverse Divine Grace and Favour; and if the Work, GOD hath wrought for us, be truly denominated Great and Gracious, the Sequel or Argument, it infers, is strong and cogent, and the Motive is ponderous, both strictly obliging us to a correspondent Performance of our Duty unto the Almighty Benefactor, instantly serving him day and night; to bless the Lord, praise, and exalt him above all for ever. Bless therefore thou the Lord, O my Soul, and all that is within me praise his holy Name. Let every thing that hath Breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.  
And is this Work of Salvation, the LORD hath wrought for us, magnified by another double and inseparable Motto or Signature, that it is wonderful and glorious? With what pious and holy Admiration of Divine Goodness and Mercy, with what high and noble Contemplations of Adoration and Honour ought we to address ourselves unto him? And all this not to be stinted in the Theory of the Mind, but to proceed with due Operation on our Souls and Bodies, in point of practise; to offer them in doing our Duties unto the Lord, as our reasonable Service, in token that his Benefits are both Spiritual and Temporal, in preserving our RELIGION, our LIVES, our LAWS, and LIBERTIES. And may all Princes and Potentates, Nations and People, with us fall down and worship the LORD GOD Omnipotent who reigneth; may all become true Saints militant in Lives and Conversations, and with the innumerable Multitude of the Saints triumphant, break forth into that sacred Cry, Salvation to our GOD which sitteth upon the Throne, and unto the LAMB; 
Rev. 7. 10.  and with them perpetually chant out the holy Angels Doxology; Blessing, and Glory, and Wisdom, and 
Ver. 12.  Thanksgiving, and Honour, and Power, and Might be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.  
And hence I pass, from thus rendering unto God the things that are God's, to render also unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's: For hath our Most Excellent and Serene sovereign Lord the KING been, under GOD, the Principal and Happy Instrument of the Preservation of our NATIONS, and most Parts of EUROPE? Hath he been a Moses, and a Deliverer unto us all? Hath he undergone a long and tedious Scene of Toil and Trouble, of Disquiet and Anxious Cares, as so many Thorns in his Crowns, with his Watchings and perpetual Labours, to indulge us all with Quiet and sweet Repose, in saving us by a great Deliverance? Our Duty then commencing from hence is, That we copy out to ourselves the Men of Judah's 
2 Sam. 20. 2.  Fidelity unto their Royal David, and cleave unto our KING; and as with one Heart, and one Mouth, praise, glorify, and bless GOD for the many eminent Preservations of HIS MAJESTY, and for His late prosperous Return to His Liege People, with the Glories and Triumphs of PEACE; and next, that we set the most fervent Affections of our Souls to work in Prayer, that His MAJESTY may long reap the Fruits of His Labours in Joy and Tranquillity, and that all His Subjects may have the Grace to be most thankful to Him, and honour Him with many Honours, whom the LORD himself hath thus far dignified as a lively Pattern of Solomon, a noble Transcript of that Great Original, in as much as he hath magnified him 
1 Chron. 29. 25.  exceedingly in the sight of all Men, and bes●owed upon him such Royal Majesty, as hath scarce been( weighing all Circumstances) on any King before in our Israel. And we all of this, and our two Neighbouring Kingdoms, are most obnoxious to the severest Lashes of Cen●ure and Reprehension, for the black and odious 'vice of Ingratitude to GOD, and the KING, if for our Salvation we are not willing and obedient in all our Duties unto the Lord, and his Anointed, considering how great things are done for us, beginning auspiciously with a Revolution too marvelous at first to find Faith in some, when it was intimated to them, and desired by their very Souls; that they, and all things dear to them might enjoy Safety; but the Affair was too great to be presently credited: So that the Grace of GOD, and Love of our good KING did for a time transcend the Belief, and exceed the Hope of Man; and the mighty Work was not begun and then let fall, and the Design vanish, but it hath been carried on with such Steps and Marks of Providence from on high, such a vein of Diligence and Dexterity here below, to an happy Termination of War by the Blessing of PEACE descending from the sovereign Fountain of all Happiness, that it hath rhetoric sufficient to persuade all reasonable Men to fear God and honour the KING.  
Can Men then be ungrateful for such Blessings, and Miracles of Kindness? If they can, they may provoke GOD to recompense their Folly by a suitable Calamity, and to cover himself with a Cloud, that their Prayer shall not enter through; for they that despise him shall be lightly esteemed: And if any will not reverence the KING with that Awe, and Love, and Congratulation, which become Men, who have received many and most exalted Benefits by Him, the Dishonour will be theirs by rendering themselves unworthy of Him; and yet they shall honour Him too, notwithstanding their bitterest Envy and worst Wishes, when thereby they place Him in the Rank of those ancient Heroes and Worthies, who for their many good Offices received bad Requitals; yea, to carry this infinitely higher than Men, how hath GOD himself been slighted for his Mercies? and CHRIST, who came to save us all, suffered on Earth the highest Indignities and Affronts: The Servant then is not 
Jo. 13. 16.  greater than his Lord, neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.  
But to exemplify the World's across Dealings to some Men of no small Merit, we may introduce on this Theatre the valiant Gideon, to whose House the Children of Israel shewed not Kindness, according to all the Goodness which he had shewed unto them, as it is written, judge. 8. 35. and no wonder, if we consider the Remark of the foregoing Verse, that they remembered not the Lord their God, who had delivered them out of the hands of all their Enemies on every side. Next we will subjoin some in the Heathen World, as Aristides, surnamed the Just; Lycurgus, that famous Lacedemonian Legislator, of whom the Oracle could not determine, whether he ought to be registered with Mortals, or by an Apotheosis placed among the Gods. Solon also another excellent Lawgiver, and one of the seven Sages, or Wise Men of Greece; these, with many others, had the hard Fate to receive the incongruous recompense of Evil for Good. And to instance in One more; The Greater Scipio Africanus, the Restorer of his Country, when almost lost, heartless, and even expiring by the Conquests of the Carthaginians, was ungratefully rewarded, and he as handsomely ordered to be engraven on his Tomb at the place of his Exile, where he died, this home exprobration; INGRATA. PATRIA. NE. OSSA. QUIDEM. MEA. HABES: to let the Romans know that they were unworthy of his Dust and Ashes after his Death, who used him so barbarously in his Life, that had delivered their State from perishing in the Ashes of Destruction, and made them Lords over their Enemies.  
But now, may not any eclipse the Beauty and Lustre of these, we hope, golden Days commencing, nor slain their own Reputation by any want of Esteem or Dutifulness to His Most Sacred MAJESTY, who hath approved Himself to be, not only the Father of our Country, but of EUROPE; and who with Achilles should have an Homer, to set forth and extol his Virtues in a true style, heroic like themselves, that they may never be defaced for want of such lasting Monuments, as may be of equal Duration with the visible World. And may GOD so touch the Hearts of all the KING's Subjects, that their good Desires and best Wishes may be towards Him; that Love, Honour, and Faithful Obedience unto Him may continually circulate through every Vein of all His Dominions, that he may enjoy a good Reward of his Merits, a Crown of Gladness, of Peace, and Prosperity here. And may he ever have the Prayers and Supplications of all Good People, that God will be pleased to keep Him as the Apple of his Eye, and hid him under the shadow of his Wings from his deadly Enemies, who device to take away his Life; and that, when the time comes, wherein Nature will lay Him down to sleep with His Fathers, He may depart hence in Peace, and in a good old Age, full of Days, Riches, and Honour. And as we would that His REIGN be long and glorious on Earth, may it be incomprehensibly so in eternal Rest in the Kingdom of our GOD, and his Saints, in the World to come.  
For can any thing we may do for His MAJESTY be too great? Can all, that we are able to think or act for Him, be any sufficient Compensation for all those repeated Blessings we by Him enjoy, and for the Fatigue He hath to that end sustained, and the great Salvation which under GOD He hath wrought for us? So that as Samuel, when( he praying and sacrificing) the Lord thundered with a great Thunder upon 
1 Sam. 7. 10.  the Philistines, and discomfited them, and they were smitten before Israel, set up a ston or Monument in token thereof, we may erect some memorable Pillar or Trophy in honour of our Deliverance, bearing the same Inscription as did that Prophet's; Hitherto hath 
Ver. 12.  the LORD helped us.  
And hath the LORD helped us hitherto? Hath his Anointed KING WILLIAM the Third been the Mighty Man of Valour, by whom he hath thus helped and saved us; and shall not all these glorious things then, that we have seen with our Eyes, and have heard with our Ears, be pondered in our Hearts with an holy Joy and Exultation, with hearty Hallelujahs to GOD, and sincere Loyalty to the KING? Shall they not be a large and noble Theme of Discourse, of Praise and Thanksgiving, not only in these days, but to our Posterity also? If they shall, as verily they will, the Duty arising from, and influenced by such powerful Motives is, that in our Retributions to GOD and the KING, we so demean ourselves, that we become more worthy Members of that blessed economy, we rejoice in under them both; that now by steering a right course in all Acts of Religion and Obedience, we may be a Praise throughout the Earth, and raise among ourselves, and in future Ages, an holy Emulation of giving GOD the Glory; as doth His MAJESTY; like the Royal and Holy David, the Devout Jehoshaphat, the Pious Hezekiah, the Great and Christian Constantine; like our Valiant Henry the Fifth, after His Victory at Agincourt, and our Memorable and Glorious Queen Elizabeth in her general Thanksgiving for the Defeat of the Spanish Armada.  
And next shall it, in the Generations to come, be according to this time said of us,( as it hath been, and yet shall be said of Jacob and of Israel) what hath God wrought? What astonishing Mercies hath he shewed us, and how hath he sustained us, as he did them, laying his left Hand under our Heads, and with his right Hand embracing and defending us? May we then be what they were required to be, an holy and peculiar People, zealous of GOD's GLORY, that he may delight to continue his Beneficence unto us, and in time to come it may be said what a Wise and Understanding People we were, upon whom the Riches of GOD's Goodness wrought its Proper and genuine Effect, in that it made us rich in Good Works.  
And now to close up all, be we sure to assume no Praise to ourselves, as though our own Arm and Policy had done great things for us; nor let us, with the ancient Scythians, Sacrifice unto our Swords; but ascribe the whole Power and Praise of all to GOD: let us evermore Rej●yce in his Salvation, in the Blessings of PEACE and tranquillity, wherewith he Crowns us, and in his Name set up our Banners, Consecrating to him all our Trophies. And may all our Duties concentre in such a due Reverence, and Decorum, that no Sin may desecrate our Piety, nor defile the Holiness and Purity of our Oblations; now our time, like that of the Jews, is turned unto us from 
Esth. 9. 22.  Sorrow to Joy, and from Mourning into a good Day; may our Gladness then no way degenerate into Luxury or Wantonness, Profaneness, or any thing Dishonourable to our Merciful and most Holy LORD GOD, who hath now granted us PEACE, one of the Blessings that crwoned Solomon's Glory; the Continuance of which to us and all Christendom, let us hearty pray for: And seeing God's Mercy and Truth are met together, let us so live, that our Righteousness and this blessed and happy PEACE may embrace and kiss each other. To this end may we be Righteous in our Retributions of our Duty and Services to GOD; Righteous in our Tribute of Fealty and Homage to the KING; Righteous in all our Transactions towards our Neighbours, and Righteous to our Selves, that we Sin not against our own Souls. Let us Pray for our Enemies, and for those who were such, and are now by GOD's good Providence made, we hope, our Friends: And may Love, Unity, and Concord every where Flourish; and all Hostilities of the Heart and Mind cease, as well as those of the Sword. May the World see that GOD hath Built us, and hath not broken us down; he hath Planted us, and not plucked us up. May the Romish Enemies of our Religion be now advertised of the Vanity of their Attempts against our Church, whose Basis is on the Rock of GOD's Word, which can never be prevailed against: May her many signal Deliverances, especially this last, work such a precaution in them, that they may never make any farther approaches against Her, lest haply they be found even to fight against GOD. And let us keep innocency, and do the thing that is right; and then, if it be so, that they will not desist from evil Practices against us, we may boldly take up the three Holy Childrens courageous Resolution 
Dan. 3.  to nabuchadnezzar, when his Fiery Furnace was in view, as their next Moment's Fate; and let our Foes know, we are not careful to answer them in this 
Ver. 16, 17.  matter, for our GOD, whom we serve, is able to deliver us from their hottest Fury, and he will deliver us out of their Hands: From all which let them be seasonably admonished, and receive this Instruction in Relation to our Church; That surely there is no enchantment against Jacob, neither is there any Divination against Israel: according to this time it shall be said of Jacob, and of Israel, What hath God wrought?  
FINIS.